Oranges are everyone’s favorite fruits and seeing someone biting into an orange for the taste of the juice is a popular sight everywhere.
This is not only limited to humans as even donkeys love to be fed oranges.
Oranges are a wonderful treat for your donkeys. The fruit contains quite a number of nutrients from vitamins to antioxidants to fiber which are essential to your donkey’s day to day health.
This article will discuss the health benefits of oranges, how often you should feed oranges to donkeys, if they can eat the peels and leaves of oranges among other questions you might have.
What Are The Health Benefits Of Oranges To Donkeys?
- Fiber
Oranges are most popular for their fiber content. They are very rich in fiber which is important for promoting gut health and easing the digestive process.
Oranges contain both soluble and insoluble fiber including pectin, cellulose and hemi-cellulose.
A feeding of oranges can help your donkey add to its’ daily recommended dosage of fiber.
- Protein
Protein is an important nutrient used by all animals for various bodily functions.
The amino acids in protein help in cell building and generation, transporting of essential nutrients, development of muscles to mention a few.
The importance of protein in your donkeys’ diet cannot be overemphasized enough and oranges help to contribute their quota to that.
- Folate
Folate is an important nutrient for healthy development and growth of the body. Oranges are a rich source of folate.
Folate helps in the production of white and red blood cells in the body. This in turn ensures your donkey is well protected from diseases.
- Vitamins
Oranges are a rich source of quite a number of vitamins. Vitamins such as vitamin C and B1 are found in rich quantities in oranges.
These vitamins play important roles such as strengthening the donkeys’ immune system and boosting the production of antibodies.
Boosting coordination and motor control functions are also promoted by these vitamins and feeding donkeys oranges will go a long way in making them super healthy
- Potassium
Potassium has quite a number of uses in the body including aiding metabolism and promoting the development of teeth and bones.
Oranges are a good source of potassium and helps donkeys in maintaining a good life balance.
Here is an article I wrote where I compiled all the foods and treats good for donkeys
How Often Should I Feed Them Oranges?
Oranges are a great and healthy treat to add to your donkey’s diet. Donkeys love to eat and if given the chance, they would eat almost anything that comes their way.
Because your donkeys love oranges, does not mean you have to feed it to them everyday or every time.
Donkeys are prone to weight gain especially when placed on a sugar-rich diet.
You should only feed them oranges from time to time to reduce the incidence of obesity in the donkeys. It is preferable to give them about 1 to 2 pieces per treat.
Do not give too many oranges at once to donkeys as this can cause colic.
As a donkey owner you can decide to feed them oranges once every other day or once a week depending on your choice and discretion.
Can Mini Donkeys Eat Oranges?
If you are a miniature donkey owner, it is okay for you to be concerned whether your mini can have the same treats as the standard donkeys.
Mini donkeys can eat oranges and they love to have oranges as treats from time to time.
Before feeding oranges to your minis though, remember they are smaller than the standard donkey and one might not eat as much food as they do.
Also, most miniature donkeys do not engage in heavy laborious activities, as they are most often kept on farms to serve as guard animals.
As such they are prone to weight gain if their diet is not watched. Oranges should be fed in moderation to avoid any negative health reactions.
Can Donkeys Eat Orange Peels?
The orange outer layer, also known as the peel, is absolutely safe for donkeys to eat.
It is important to wash the orange before you peel off the skin and feed it to your donkeys.
The orange peels are not harmful to them, but some of them may dislike the bitter taste.
To increase the chances of the donkeys eating the peels, you might feed it to them with the orange juice itself.
Orange peels are rich in important nutrients such as fiber, vitamins and polyphenols which help your donkeys fight against diseases.
Can Donkeys Eat Orange Tree Leaves?
It is safe to feed orange tree leaves to donkeys as they are not toxic and do not contain any poisonous properties.
Your donkeys might not exactly like them however as they tend to have a bitter taste.
Orange leaves are good for their sedative purposes and also to treat cough and nerve spasms and stomach cramps.
If your donkeys have however acquired a taste for orange tree leaves and you have orange trees in your farmstead, you might want to fence off your trees to protect the fruits.
Also check out this article I wrote on can donkeys eat horse feed
Things To Watch Out For Before Feeding Them Oranges?
Oranges are low caloric fruits, however it doesn’t mean you should feed them oranges all the time.
Oranges should be fed in moderation to donkeys as they are sugar-rich and donkeys are prone to weight gain when fed a sugar-rich diet.
Oranges when taken in excess can lead to digestion issues and stomach cramps because of the high fiber content as such, feeding should be moderated.
Furthermore, cut oranges into smaller pieces before feeding to donkeys to avoid them choking on the fruit while trying to swallow.
It’ll be easier for them to chew and swallow small pieces rather than just giving them a large one at once.
How Can I Feed Oranges To My Donkeys?
Oranges should be thoroughly washed before being fed to donkeys to eliminate the chances of the donkeys getting sick from pesticides used to grow the fruit.
After washing the orange, peel it carefully and cut into smaller pieces which can be placed in the donkeys’ food bowl or hand fed to them.
If your donkey enjoys eating the peels, you can cut the orange with the peel.
You can also feed oranges with other fruits that your donkeys love to eat such as apples, carrots and cucumber.
Conclusion
If you have been having doubts about whether you can feed oranges to your donkey then you know you can.
However, the keyword is moderation as excess feeding of oranges can lead to health problems for your donk.
Oranges are rich in fiber and vitamin content and are commonly used to solve many health problems in both humans and animals.
The peels and leaves of oranges are safe for them to eat and some of them might even come to like the taste.
